The Athenian patrician Thucydides began writing the history of his city’s conflict with Sparta even as the war was beginning.

Despite being rivals, many Athenians admired the government, clothing, and austerity of the Spartans. Falling prey to “Laconophilia,” some began to adopt the mannerisms and even dress like their ...

On the eve of the Peloponnesian War in 432 BC, the wise king of Sparta, Archidamus, was summoned to address a clash between the Corinthians and Athenians. Corinth, an ally of Sparta, warned that ...